When The Stars Fell
by Joel B Atwater
Summary: This story is a series of one shots and short stories from many different characters in many different areas of the Steven Universe canon. It will be told from the perspective of mostly OC's and mostly surrounding the events of the colonization of Earth and the interactions between humans and gems before, during, and after Roses Rebellion. Updates will be sporadic and random.
1. Chapter 1

**When The Stars Fell**

 **By**

 **Joel B. Atwater**

 **A special thanks to my current following,**

 **small as it may be,**

 **you special few are what have kept my writing going**

 **and to Sturm and Drag,**

 **whose writing inspired me in the first place**

 **Chapter One**

 **Old Drink, New Friends**

Few sounds were heard in the empty city at night. The city of empires raised and burned. It's buildings, once magnificent displays of beauty, grace, wealth, and strength, were now little more than shadows of their former selves. Those that still stood had their windows covered with fresh snow and gray-black soot. Many of the windows were shattered, filling the insides of the structures with the same mix of snow and soot, with a few shards of glass now sticking out of it as well. Many of the taller buildings had long since collapsed, or burned out, leaving charred steel husks with chunks of concrete desperately clinging to the skeletons of the city. The ones that still stood undamaged, or at least intact enough to visualize what they once looked like reached up towards the heavens, a few even breaking through the cloud of dark soot the coated sky. Most had been looted down to the studs, and those that hadn't were filled with things long found to be useless. Things that had once been believed to be necessities for life were now so long dead that anyone who viewed them could only appreciate them for what they appeared to be, shiny, reflective, artificial, rocks.

Other buildings were filled with what had once been usable transports. They had required a special piece be put into a part in the front and to be turned. If you managed to find the right piece the best you could hope for in the city was a dull screech and several puffs of smoke. There were some buildings that had once held food, now wrecked messes of the once beautiful public meeting places were the word and food were shared. All that remained to let you know they had once provided nurishment were broken and bashed signs depicting what you could've received. Some buildings were even full of hundreds of old, heavy, cases. When they were opened they were always full, or so elders said. Inside were really only many thinly pressed pieces of wood, covered in script that few around knew how to transcribe.

Jack stood out of one such building now. He was waiting. His sister had met what Jack had first assumed to be an old beggar. The man turned out to be a scavenger and had befriended her, stating that he was a loner and offered them stories of worlds long past if the two could bring him a bottle of burning water. Jack was apprehensive, but Abby had been insistent and so the three agreed to meet outside the old building after night fall. Jack could never understand why some elders chose to enjoy the hard drink. It dried one's mouth, dulled their mind, and made their limbs heavy. Lucky though Jack had know where some was, and retrieving it hadn't been all too hard. One of the public eateries had a few bottles behind it's counter. They had taken the day to go get it and now they waited outside the building of useless tomes. Abby had gone to search the nearby broke transports, popping open their doors with a crowbar or just bashing in the windows.

" _Ack-Huahu-ACKU,"_

Jack brought a stained cloth up to his mouth and his hand to his chest. He felt the strength begin to leave his legs and had to stumble before falling to his knees. His vision blurred and the burning in his chest grew, before finally dulling. Jack's strength returned and he wiped his mouth. Looking at the cloth he grimaced. It didn't take a genius to know that coughing up blood and bits of lung meant you were dying. Jack had been sick for a while, infact for as long as he could remember. Most kids born in the city were sick, you were lucky to live past the first day. Mothers often followed their children. This was life in the burned city. Those who lived in the city did so out of necessity, rather than comfort. It provided shelter and easier pickings for food than the outer country. Some areas were controlled by gangs, but the urban sprawl was so massive and filled with so any of the creatures of light that it was impossible to claim territory larger than a few blocks. Occasionally strange ships would float above the city or could be heard above the clouds. Some were loud and Jack thought he'd seen people in them. Others seemed to move impossibly, changing course and speed at a whim.

None could be see or heard as Jack watched the shadows flicker in the hollow buildings, the small fire causing the light to dance between to windows and doors. Every once in a while a bitter wind would blow and nearly snuff out the small flame, forcing Jack to shield it with his outstretched jacket. The wind would die and then the embers would flare up, forcing Jack to dance back away from the flames. He now stood in front of them again, rubbing his hands together every once in awhile and then pushing them, fingers outstretched, towards the warm flames.

"Hare's yer sisster?"

Jack jumped, his hand shooting to the single barreled shotgun at his hip. The break action 12 gauge nested frimling in a hostler made from a broken water jug that hung loosely from a belt slung over his shoulders like a makeshift bandoleer. His fingers brushed the edge of the pistol grip, causing him to fumble the draw. Before he could move his hand to wrap around the handle and retry the draw, Jack felt the pressure of cold steel pushing up his nose.

 _Click_

"Ho der yuning,"

The thick accented greeting came from the mouth of a brown haired man, that was now more gray than brown. His cheeks were covered with a thick, scraggly, and partially singed beard. He was certainly old by the lifespan of the city, to Jack he seemed ancient, but he couldn't have been more than 70. His eyes were still bright and alive, and the revolver in his hand was held firmly, index finger resting on the primed trigger. His face was adorned with a bright smile and was made all the more so by his light brown eyes, that burned with a bottomless curiosity, "I'm de old dog yer meting member?"

Jack's hand drifted from his shotgun and he smiled back. The man seemed nice enough, although the circumstances of their second meeting were worse than desired, "Yeah, dis me and my sisster coming to meet you,"

"Ah, well wer't is she?" He asked, taking the revolver and sticking it into a leather holster strung across his chest. He wore an old green, canvas backpack, loaded to bear with various cloth bags. Some were manufactured, well others hand woven. A large knife and a hachette hung from a belt he wore at his waist, with them another pistol and several shotgun shells. Slung over his right shoulder was a scoped rifle, mounted in a wooden stock. A large, pipe, suppressor sat on the muzzle. He leaned forward on a heavy looking, hardwood cane. It's handle was a rounded orb and the beggars hands sat crossed over the top of it. He leaned forward, as though ready to capture Jacks every word.

"She's ot checking de broken movers and buildings fur stuffings," Jack said, sitting down and leaning his back against the building behind him.

"Ah… so ye got de burning water?" the old man asked, sitting down next to him.

"Yeah," Jack replied, reaching into his jacket. He pulled out the cloth package. At one point it had been a dazzling dark violet, made of imitation silk. It was now a dark brown, having been first melted from the great fire and then dirt and ash having stuck to the coating. The top was sealed with what was once a bright gold piece of ¼ inch twine, once having been smooth as the violent cloth. Now it was a dark yellow, it too stained by decades of neglect that caused the fibers to fray. The beggar cut off the twine and pulled out the bottle inside. It was a fairly large, (add descriptions) glass bottle. The top was sealed with a wooden cork, and the inside filled with a light amber liquid. On one side was a crown and some of the old script written on it.

 _Pop_

The cork realised with a minor bit of effort and sound, and the old man brought the bottle to his nose. He took a deep breath and let out a sigh, "Ye gut a gud un,"

The loner then brought the bottle to his mouth and took a large gulp. Then another slightly smaller gulp, and then a third, before finally putting to bottle down. Jack open his water bottle, one of the small clear ones you found in the metal and plastic cans everywhere, and did the same as the old man, taking fuller, deeper, gulps. He wiped his mouth and offered it to the loner. The old man started to shy away, before shrugging and swiping the bottle, taking several big swallows before handing it back to Jack. Having been full when he got it out, little more than a few large drops were at the bottom now.

"De ye want sum?" the old scavenger said, offering Jack the bottle of amber fire water. The boy was about to refuse, wehn another stream of hard coughs racketed through his chest. He doubled over, holding his sides as the hard exalations forced blood and spittle through his clenched teeth. He lay there for a few seconds, waiting for the burning to stop before finally pushing himself up into a sitting position and wiping his mouth, "Ye got der radiation sickess,"

"Huh?"

"Der radiation sickess, my pop hade it, his pop to. Ti's a terrible sickess," The scavenger said, pushing the bottle into Jacks hands, "It won't der nuth't fur a cure, but it'll hup de pain,"

Jack looked at the man and then at the bottle. The amber liquid inside caused his eyes to smart more than they already were from the cold and the smell almost forced him to gag. But Jack did know that the doctors would make you drink a few small glasses before any operation, so he swallowed and lifted the bottle to his lips. The liquid burned, tasting unnatural, and Jack spat some out when he was finished drinking. The old man laughed and Jack chuckled with him, before handing the bottle back. He could feel a warm numbness spreading through his body. He could also feel a small desire to vomit and a slightly larger one to lie down and sleep. He fought both.

Jack opened his mouth to ask how the man could tell had had radiation sickness, when he heard several gunshots echo from down the street where his sister was. He could see her running, her pistol in hand. It's small .22 caliber rounds sounded more like firecrackers than gunshots, and appeared to be severing her just as well. Behind her Jack saw what he first thought to be wild dogs. But they moved too fast, jumped too high, and landed too hard to be any of the diseased, flea bitten, mongrels that roamed the streets. Then he saw it.

One of the dogs jumped on the roof of an old yellow transport, caving it in. A stiff winter breeze caused what could only be called it's maine to shift wildly, flashing a mix of deep amber browns to near golden yellows in the small amount of moonlight there was. It was large, standing just below chest height and easily as long a Jack. It's face was a long, broad, pointed snout. A pair of large, pointed ears, now pulled flat to the creatures head, sat above and just behind a pair of eyes. They were a shade of deep golden amber, that focused on Jack with a precise and primitive ferocity. Below it's head, in the center of it's chest, sat a 5 sided gem, cut a sharp angles to resemble an upside down teardrop. It glittered and shined with beautiful radiance.

Jacks hand wrapped itself around the pistol grip of his shotgun. He drew and took a brief second to aim and brace himself before sending the hammer slamming forward. A mixture of broken nails and hard pebbles shot out of the barrel. The short barrel and lack of a shot cup made them slow, but they still hit with enough force for several to go flying through the beasts coat. A few other peppered the transport below, turning the hood and what remained of the windshield into a mess of broken glass and mangled metal. The creature stumbled back off the transport and fell onto the ground with a dull thud.

Jack hit the lever to open the shotgun. The spent shell came hurtling out. Jack reached into his jacket and pulled out a new shell. This one was a solid metal projectile, being cast from melted lead. Jack had to fight the ejection spring to push it in, but soon the action closed with a metallic _snap._ Jack took a second to unfold the wire metal stock on top of the barrel before taking aim again and sending the slug downrange. The kick was tremendous and Jack stumbled back a few feet, but the slug flew true. It slammed headlong into the gem of another one of the light creatures, its gem a light purple. It let out a brief shriek before collapsing into a cloud of dust. The shards clinked onto the ground.

Jack reached down to reload again, but the old loner came up beside him. He had drawn his rifle up to his shoulder and took a second to aim, before striking the gem standing over Abby. The rifle made a sound similar to a muffled thud as the homemade suppressor contained the expanding gases and the bullet zipped through the wolf like creatures neck. It growled and turned to where the fire had come from, before being struck with another bullet. The old man racked the bolt with incredible speed, switching from target to target.

"Go get un sisster," the old man nearly bellowed, taking aim again, a striking the gem of another creature. Jack nodded, closing a new round into his shotgun and ran forward. Abby was pushing herself up to her feet, and desperately trying to reload her pistol well the old man held off the creatures. Jack pulled her up the rest of the way and the two ran towards the building of old tomes. The old man had moved inside now, resting the fore end of his rifle on a bashed out window sill. Some of the creatures tried to follow them inside, but a blast of homemade buckshot, and several more shots from the .22 deterred them.

Chest heaving Jack supported himself with his knees, taking deep breaths before lifting his head to really examine his surroundings. The inside was as he expected, mostly empty space, broken by a few chairs and tables scattered about. The walls were lined with hundreds of the old tomes, some of them having spilled out onto the ground. The old loner slung his rifle back over his shoulder and beckoned for the two to follow. They stood and followed the old my through several doors and past several rooms. They came to a flight of stairs that wound upwards and had perched above it a now broken skylight. The loner ascended the stairs and the siblings followed. Once they reached the third floor the loner walked down a ways before turning left into what appeared to be a small hovel built from some of the tables and shelving.

Jack ducked inside, holding up the clot that acted as a door for Abby, before turning to see the old man stoking the embers of a wood stove. They flared p and he smiled, closing the door to the stove. He reached down a placed a small, metal pot over the stove and stuck a ladle into it. He gave it a few stirs before lifting the ladle to taste, "Needs more pepper,"

"What?" Abby asked, sitting down at a small table next to the stove.

"Needs more pepper, ould you be a darling und garb me tat jar up der," The old man said, pointing to a glass jar full of black powder above Abby's head. She lifted it down and passed it to him. The man opened the jar and took a small handful out. He threw it into the pot and gave it another few stirs before placing a lid over it, "Stew'll be eady in a few,"

"Ight," Jack said, sitting next to Abby, "So we got you de fire water, tell us sum stories,"

"Yeah, hoed de world gurt ike dis?" Abby ask, placing her pistol on the table.

The old loner sat in a large, soft chair across from the stove and the table. He held the bottle of firewater in one hand and his cane in the other. Tossing the cane up into the air he caught it mid throw and set it on the ground next to him. Taking a second to swish the bottle he took another drink and set the bottle down with a sigh. His eyes drifted upwards and Jack's followed them. They locked on a large piece of hard, clear, plastic, acting as part of the roof to the hovel. Above the plastic was a gaping hole and then a clear view of the sky. The wind a blow harder and you could just see through the layers of soot and ash that coated the sky above. You could see the moon, now just under half full, and beyond it the stars. They sparkled and tinkled, each one having it's own bright glow. Some were massive and almost seemed to shine as bright as the moon, well others were far off and dim dots of white light.

The old man took another drink and then spoke, "So ya want te hear stories now do ye? Well howsabouts we start at de beginning. Back when de Earth was old, but man twas young. Back when de sky was clear und star twas bright. Back before the ladies of stone.

* * *

It was small.

That was the first thought that came to her mind as she looked at the round mass of rock and metal that occupied this point is space. It was easy to forget just how large things were when viewing them from a position several thousand miles away and through the protective screen on a dropship. It was very small compared to the other colonies and to the naked, untrained eye would've appeared to be little more than floating trash. This, however, was not the case. Everything about the newest addition to the Diamonds empire was more than making up for it's lack of size. The other planets in the system had lacked certain features that made them ideal for colonization. Atmosphere would be too thick, or the planet's crust to hot, or lacking the needed resources for gem production. But this small, red orb, offered everything. It's crust was iron rich and atmosphere thick enough to support the most mundane of biological organisms.

She couldn't help but grimace, remembering what they'd looked like under the micro analyzer. They'd been small, wriggling around in their primordial juices. She'd ordered the pools where they were found burned out to prevent them from spreading onto her ships. Her scouts had found them in underneath shards of the solid water that accumulates on the planet's surface in cracks and crevices. The planet's surface red was dotted with hundreds of natural canyons, some requiring no terraforming effort to begin production.

And produce this colony would. It was her first after all, and paramount to the capture of her second. That one was going to be much more of a chore. It was larger, though much more than it's red cousin and was closer to it's sun. This had caused it to be more hospitable for life. She glanced over to the other planet that had fallen under her control. It appeared as an orb of different greens and browns coating it's crust. Where there was no land there was a deep blue water, that stretched out over the rest of the orb. A small, gray ball orbited around it, it's dusty surface peppered with crater holes. A base was being built in one of the shallower ones to allow White Diamond to oversee it's capture. The life the blue-green planet harboarded had peaked her interest ever so slightly and she'd ordered some specimens captured for study. The intelligent life had proven to be somewhat problematic, one of her scouting parties having been attacked well exploring a river valley, but this was to be expected. After all it'd taken Blue and Yellow centuries to build their sections of the vast empire, eons even.

No, she would claim this small system in a few short years at most. Then she would show them. Pink was all too well aware that it was her small stature and relatively new addition to the Diamonds upper elite that had forced her into the position of figure head and errand runner for her first few decades of life. But she'd finally had enough, demanded her own army, fleet, and, colony. Much to her surprise she'd received them. Yellow thought that she'd acted like a spoiled brat and didn't deserve a reward for such an outburst. Blue however had advocated for her and finally White Diamond had relented, handing over a fleet of 350 ships of various shapes and sizes, an army of near a million, and this small chunk of space to colonize. If her efforts were good and outcomes excellent, she would gain more.

And more was what she wanted.

* * *

 **First chapter of a new story WOAH! YEAH! Feels good to work on something new. For those unaware this is a prequel/tie in/ spin off of another story I'm working on in the SU universe called Old War, New Battles. Well it is not required (Yet at least) to read the other story to enjoy or even understand this one, I would recommend doing so as eventually characters and events from that story will be mentioned in this one.**

 **Now what is this story?**

 **Well, if you must know, it is a series of one shots and short stories about human-gem relations before the show. Basically everything just before colonization to just before Steven is born. It is going to look at what I believe the history of Earth in this universe to be. I'm doing all of my research by myself on a google chromebook and my phone so please don't lynch me if I get something wrong historically. This story is much more of a passion/side project than the other one so uploads will be much more sporadic. Each chapter does not have to follow the one before and the story will lack a hard timeline. One chapter can be on the very beginning interactions between humans and gems and the next be on the use of corrupted gems in the trenches of the great war. This story will be a little vulgar and gory at some points so be warned if you dislike such things.**

 **With that please leave reviews. Anything form just saying you like what I did, to a long criticism of everything I've written is helpful. My belief with writing is say literally whatever you want, be as mean as you want, but please make it something I can actually use to improve my writing. Beyond that I will see you next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2 The Universe Is A Big Place

**Hey something I forgot to mention chapter 1. For the cannon of this story, and the small universe it is a part of, Pink Diamond and Rose Quartz are two separate people. Anything else having to do with them will be relieved in later chapters, but I wanted to put this out there so people were aware. Sorry if you were hoping for a canonical fanfic.**

 **The Universe Is A Big Place**

" _Click-Clack"_

" _Click-Clack"_

" _Click-Clack"_

The echo of her short heels on the stone composite floor were all that was heard in the hall. Her Diamond had sent her here to give a report on the colonies progress. Well there was nothing but good news, or rather almost nothing, she still couldn't shake the feeling of nervousness in her abdomen. The other Diamonds were always so much... _more_. She hated to put it like that, she really did, but it was true. Where it was clear Pink Diamond was above the other gems around her, it was clear more so do to her dress and court than her actual presence. The other Diamonds seemed to bend the very forces of reality around themselves to fit their mold. There was even a rumor going around that Blue Diamond actually lowered the temperature of any room she entered. And it wasn't as if the building she was in made it all the more apparent who held sway here. The entirety of the place was some kind of yellow, be it the sort of light goldish color of the floor, to the pillars on either side of her that spiraled upwards in a pattern of greenish yellow. They held up a massive ceiling above her, covered in hundreds of chiseled pictures of battles fought, heroics displayed, and progress made. It must have taken the most skillful craftsman centuries to complete the seemingly endless small details. Every chip or scratch on a piece of armor or on a ship's exterior was there.

The long hall had few lights, rather being lit by the natural light of Homeworlds star. Pearl paused for a moment to look out at the massive ball of burning hydrogen. It's size was easily ten times that of the star that inhabited her Diamonds system. It burned a hungry, bright red. There were two planets close to it. The closer one was used as a warp port, acting as a stopping point between galaxy warps all over the universe. The other's surface was much hot to be of any great use. On occasion weapons would be tested on the planet, but even these were limited as it's close proximity to it's star had burned away any atmosphere, making suborbital travel impossible without the use of gravity repulsion systems that drained massive amounts of power.

Pearl began to walk again, still looking out the window at the massive star. Not paying attention, she nearly ran headlong into the doors in front of her, "Silly me, so caught up in my own thoughts,"

She took a minute to dust herself off, and make sure she looked presentable. Yellow Diamond was a bit more of a perfectionist than the others and Pearl had heard what happened to gems that displeased her. The danger seemed all the greater to herself, remembering that she was not infact Pink's first. Taking in a deep breath and letting it out she tapped the screen next to the door and entered. Inside, sat atop her control throne, was Yellow Diamond, supreme commander of the gem's military and police forces. Everything about her accentuated power, from her helmet to her breast plate. The shine on her armor was impeccable and Pearl wagered that if she got close enough she would be able to actually see her reflection. To say she was large was an understatement. The Diamond could easy pluck her up like a toy and her control throne was several times the ivory gem's height.

She could have stood there for hours admiring the military head of their great empire if the sound of a throat being cleared and the Diamond shifting to look directly at her hadn't forced her to do otherwise. Pearl gave a small curtsy and spoke, "Yellow Diamond I'm-"

"I know who you are and why you are here," Pearl felt herself freeze. Her words didn't cut the air like a knife, rather they almost seemed to break through it like a hammer would a stone wall. The will behind them made all the more clear whose domain this was, "Now get on with it,"

"Yes, of course. Progress on the first planet captured has been going excellently. Three of the natural canyons have already been fully converted to kindergartens and the construction of a galaxy warp should be completed within the planets next solar cycle. It should be producing it's first gems within that same time frame," Pearl said, projecting a small holographic screen from her gemstone. She tapped a few keys and then pulled up several graphics of the colonies progress. Yellow appeared impressed, or at the very least not dissapointed, which was good to see, " A lack of any complex organisms will allow us to start gem production at full scale much sooner than originally thought. The planet should be converted within Homeworlds current solar cycle,"

"And the second," The Diamond said, raising an eyebrow.

Pearl froze. She'd hoped that she could keep Yellow Diamond focused on the progress of Mars and hopefully only give an afterthought mention of it's cousin, but it appeared the Diamond had other intentions. Clearing her throat she moved the graphic over to Earth, "Yes, Earth, my Diamond's second colony,"

"I'm well aware of its name, what it is, and who owns it," Yellow Diamond said, leaning forward and resting her chin on interlaced fingers, "Tell me what's been happening,"

"Right away your clarity, the Earth has proven somewhat more difficult to capture than Mars, but my Diamonds armies have been making steady progress. The planet is inhabited by a large variety of fauna and flora, the majority of which has proven to be quite docile. However the dominant species of the planet, what appears to be a subset of the larger haired apes that roam some of the planet's many biomes, has proven to be somewhat troublesome," Pearl said, pulling up a graphic of the hairless apes. They appeared to be capable of some basic forms of complex thought and communication, but not much beyond that. Or at least that had been the original theory, "A few who had been wandered towards the landing areas, were captured and examined thoroughly. Their bodies are actually surprisingly similar to gems in basic structure, arms and legs in the same place and in the same number. Two of them had held wooden sticks covered in strange symbols of unknown meaning and baskets full of some of the bright colored objects that the organic structures would have hanging off them. The other two carried ornate, but primitive weapons, that were also dotted with various etchings. The weapons were clubs or crude swords made using sharp stones mounted into fallen pieces of the organic matter. The skin of the ones carrying the baskets had been covered with dyes and all of them sported some form of facial piercing. After we captured them additional scouting craft were sent to see if they could discover their origin. A scouting ship discovered several fairly small groups of them in a series of river valleys. They were occupying a few small mud and wood structures, just outside our landing zone. We missed them on our first scouting tours as the trees cover the rooftops of their small civilisation. When the drop ship came closer it came under fire from a small group using primitive weapons that threw ethier stones or pointed sticks. Well leaving the ship itself undamaged the crew had not been so lucky once they'd set foot on the ground. Of the 6 gems sent, 3 were forced to reform and one still missing. The survivors had all recounted that the attack had come as a surprise and had been very well coordinated. All of the survivors believe that they managed to sustain zero injuries to the attackers. It should be noted however that only 2 quartz were sent as a security detail and were the last ones standing,"

"And how long ago was this?"

"Exactly one planetary cycle of the Earth before I left to deliver the colonies progress to you," Pearl responded.

"And what has been done about it?" Yellow asked, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"As I was leaving my Diamond was sending out additional scouting ships in order to map out the creatures settlement. She had put her troops on standby the moment the ambushed scouting party returned," Pearl said. Pink Diamond had been furious that the party had been attacked and had demanded immediate retribution. Her previous curiosity of the humans was now overshadowed by an innate desire to remove the first of many thorns in her side. However the more experienced members of her court had advised her to wait and gain some information before charging headlong into a battle she was unprepared for, "Thankfully the humans nearest to our first kindergarten location have given us no trouble of the sort, allowing gem production there to already be underway, albeit having only been performed by my Diamond, but nonetheless thirty two gems have already been produced. Infact the Quartz that escorted me here was the first on the new strain my Diamond will be producing,"

Pearl looked up at Yellow Diamond. The gem elite had leaned back again, looking over the graphics with a sort of boredness that Pearl imagined could only be felt by one in her position. The ivory gem couldn't help but wonder, as she continued to speak and scroll through her visuals, how many other reports and presentations like this the Diamond had already seen today. Such things like starting a new colony seemed so exciting and wonderful to the servant, but to the Diamonds they had be little more than routine.

Finally she finished her report and stood, hands clasped behind her back, waiting. Yellow Diamond leaned forward again to look over the map of the planet that was currently be projected. Finally she leaned back, and tapped a few times on a screen projected from the arm of her chair, "Thank you Pearl. You are dismissed, my Pearl will escort you to your quarters,"

"I'm sorry my grace, I was unaware that I was to be staying," Pearl said, curtseying.

"Yes, you will be staying for a few cycles to receive some additional training. With a clear hostile force on the planet you will need to be ready to defend your Diamond should the situation arise," Yellow Diamond said, still looking at her screen.

"Would it not be more efficient to have my trainer travel back with me to Earth so that I may receive my training and be able to serve my Diamond?" Pearl asked. Pink Diamond had at first wanted to send some random Quartz to give a report, but the advice from her court had convinced her to send her Pearl instead. She had done so expecting her trophy to be back soon, and Pearl did not wish to disappoint her liege.

"Are you questioning my _authority_?"

Pearl felt herself freeze again. Looking up she was surprised to be staring directly into the Diamond's eyes. They were flat, disks of white and then a ring of bright, fiery, golden yellow surrounding a black diamond shaped pupil. Their gaze seemed to pin her to the floor, and for a moment she was lost for words. She didn't want to disappoint her Diamond, but she also wanted to return formed and in one piece. Taking a second to internally gain her composer Pearl bowed, "Not at all your grace, my Diamond simply requested that her Pearl return quickly to be able to serve her again,"

"Well you'll be serving her by preparing yourself to be her protector now, Pearl!" She called out. A yellow head, with hair pointed upwards and a smile that said " _At your service"_ popped up from behind a control station near the Diamonds throne.

"Yes my Diamond?"

"Take Pink Diamonds Pearl to her quarters, and alert her trainer of her arrival,"

"What should I do about her escort?"

Pearl thought back again to the Quartz who'd been sent to escort her. Being the first of her Diamonds newest strain there were, undoubtedly, some defects. However those that where present were minor. She'd been the original messenger and had made clear that she was both disappointed about being unable to meet the one of the Diamonds face to face and blamed Pearl for not being able to do so. After all would Yellow Diamond not want to see the first ever gem produced on the newest colony? Pearl had luckily been able to explain why this was not to be and the Quartz had understood, allowing the rest of their journey to be rather uneventful.

Yellow Diamond rolled her eyes, before flicking her wrist and say, "I don't care, just have her be posted somewhere, doing something, until they depart. A bored Quartz is a dangerous one after all.

"Yes my Diamond," Yellow Pearl stated, coming fully out from behind her console. Well still elegant, her uniform lacked any of the flashness that Pink Diamond had so requested her Pearl have. She walked up to Pearl, and gestured for her to follow out of the room, before turning and heading out the now open doors. Pearl took one last look around one of Yellow Diamond's many throne rooms before following after her escort.

* * *

Yellow watched the dio of servants leave, before glancing back to the screens in front of her. If the reports hadn't been edited to make themselves look better than they actually were, then progress was going excellently. Infact if the reports were to be believed then things were going far better than initially imagined. The colonies chosen had, after all, been backwater plantes, largely looked over by those in gem society. Well the two colonizable ones offered plenty of resources for their size, there were only two of them and they were quite small compared to the other planets under the Diamonds control. If progress continued like this, perhaps she would rescind her previous comments about the newest edition to their order being a waste of the energy of the already standing Diamonds.

However a clearly defined threat to the progress of the colony did reenforce her belief that Pink still required a close watch. She would make a point of visiting some time to see the progress taking place first hand. Taking a last one l look at the projected progress of the Earth, Yellow turned her attention back to what had kicked this whole ordeal off with that brat.

Dismissing the report on Earth she opened up a channel with the fleet commander above Siren. The invasion had not been going well and Yellow was once again reminded of the stark inefficiency of the military body she headed. Ship and fleet commander's heads to often filled with dreams far greater than their crew could ever hope to reach. Thus invasion when not directly headed by the Diamonds almost always ran into _difficulties_.

And it was one of those fleet commanders she was about to speak with. As the screen continued to load she prepared herself to the torrent of excuses, and setbacks she would receive. How she despised the predictability of her position

* * *

"Is this how it ends Cisco?" Italo asked, his tanned thin arms outstretched from his sides. His alpaca skin robes ran over them, down his back, coming together at his shoulders where the base of a mightily headdress sat. It was a curving, arching, display of sticks bleached white sticks and once vibrant blue and red feathers that stretched out from behind his head. His eyes, now sunken back into their sockets from days without food and little light, stared towards the chief, now holding him at the village's center. The chief was tall, his skin a dark, deep, earth brown. He was the only man in the tribe of this complexion, he and his mother having come from the far east. He had broad shoulders, arms that swelled like great rivers, and hands covered in calluses, all from many years of service to the tribe that had taken he and his mother in. In his left hand was a ornately made wooden club. It's head was a large, round stone, that had been seated into the wood with a mixture of sap and ash. As the club slowly raised Italo still pleaded, "You know my intentions were good. We had to make peace, or we would be

Standing around Italo were 9 others. Around them were 8 other warriors, and the tribe's 1 remaining priest. Around them a mob of 200 chanting low and slow. And around them the village's huts, arranged in a circle to allow for mass gatherings to take place at it's centre. There was a constant rhythm to the chant, sounding as the Earth would when she breathed, rising and falling. All of the warriors skin was brightly painted in a mixture of oranges, yellows, and light greens. The marks where painted on the angles and shallows below their jaws, collar bones, ribs and arms. All held clubs similar to the Cisco's.

"It matters not Italo, you and you following have brought despair to the Bordinani. You knew of this trouble and tried to flee with those few who would follow," Cisco said, raising the club to point at the priest's chest. Cisco had not wanted this, but theft of food and attempting to free a prisoner was punishable by death, and the tribe wanted blood for their losses, "Two of the priests who followed you and two of our greatest warriors were taken by these so called gods. We are lucky that one of them managed to escape and tell us. The gods did not accept our gifts, they did not listen to the word of our priests. They drained the life from them, taking them as though they were fallen trees,"

Italo's eye's narrowed, or as much as they could with the right one swollen. His face took on a deep scowl, before saying, "You believe those lies! Those men were _saved_! Brought as the first to paradise for us all. It was your warriors, undisciplined and unworthy, who angered the gods. Was it not they who attacked their small, fly, palace? Was it not they who then attacked the gods who came out to investigate why they'd been struck? Was it not they who beat senseless and dragged a god back to our camp as a prisoner?!"

Cisco breathed deeply, and exhaled, letting the club drop back to his side. What Italo said was true, despite his orders a band of warriors had attacked one of the flying wonders. They had demanded reprisal. Two of the men in the party that had captured the god had been brothers of the one of the missing warriors. Once the flying wonder had landed they set upon the gods. All of the warriors involved said the fight had been easy, that the gods had been weak. They said that three of them had turned to clouds of dust when their spears and clubs passed through them. Finally one of the warriors had struck one of the gods in it's gem, causing the bright stone to crack. The god had fallen unconscious and it's companions had fled. The warriors then dragged the god back to their camp, claiming it as a trophy. Well Cisco had reprimanded them for disobeying him, forcing all three to dig a pit for where the prisoner's cage would be. After all he did wish to keep the god. There were many questions in need of answers and if these gods wished ill on the Bororo then he wanted a bargaining chip. Italo had thought differently. Two nights after the god had been captured Italo and a small band of his followers had been caught trying to free the god, as well as being in the possession of large amount of the tribe's supplies. The tribe would have beaten him and his following to death had Cisco not been wakened and stopped the riot, "You are right Italo, it was the warriors who brought the god to us. But it was you who attempted to steal food that belonged to the tribe and free the prisoner,"

"So that I could bring her back and make peace! Do you not understand what you have brought on us?" Italo spat, his voice rising, "Do you not know the destruction the women of stone will bring to us if we do not return their kin?"

"And who was it that prayed to these gods in the first place? Who was it that said the old gods were dead or false and demanded that we accept these new gods to bring us into paradise? These new gods are lies and you continue to defend them. They stole two of our greatest warriors! They refused our gifts! And because of you and your cult they will try and raze the us from the Earth! For your heresy and crimes against your people you will be sacrificed," Cisco shouted, bringing the club back up and pushing it into Italo's chest. Despite his smaller stature the priest held his ground, eyes burning.

"If you will damn me for my conviction then so be it. I know who the true powers are, I know who would have delivered us to life eternal. If you wish to damn the Bororo with me then so be it, just know it was not I who killed us," Italo said, pushing the club aside. He then knelt, arms outstretched, and looked up to the heavens. His face was hard for a moment, before a smile spread across his lips, "And the gods have come to take me to paradise once you sacrifice my soul,"

Cisco followed his eyes to another one of the flying wonders. This one was different from the other, it's outside was a deep pink rather than the red that the others had. It lacked any real, discernible features, being only an pink orb, maybe twice as wide as he was tall. Cisco looked at it for a moment, and then down to the necklace he wore.. It was a crescent moon with a python coiling around it. It was the only thing left of his old tribe and his father. He stared at it a second more, hoping perhaps he would be able to feel his father guiding his actions. His gaze turned back to Italo, "Then your devils can watch your soul be claimed by Ala. May you find rest with our Earthly Mother,"

With that the club raised, Italo's eye's closed, and then it fell. There was a sickening crack, and then another and another, before the false prophets head split and his blood wet the ground. His few remaining followers fell with him, throats slit or skulls split as their leader's had been. Cisco looked back to the flying wonder. It remained there, floating, watching, before it rose and flew off in the direction of the gods great flying city. His knees felt weak and soon he fell to them. The club slipped out of his hand. He hadn't wanted this. He had wanted to believe Italo, but the tribe cried for vengeance and his fate was sealed once the prisoner had almost been freed.

Cisco rose, and once again picked up his club. The smooth granite was now a dark crimson. He would wash it before speaking with the prisoner. He looked one last time at the clearing. Eight bodies lay. Eight bodies, all of whom were close friends of Cisco's. All of whom had followed false teachings and brought doom upon the rest of the tribe. He could only hope their sacrifice would please the old gods and that strength could be found in renewed worship, but he doubted it. Turning to the last priest of the tribe, Akin, he saw the young boys eyes still remained closed. The chanting had risen to a more rapid pace, sounding more labored. Then his eyes opened, he turned, and the chanting stopped.

"We must unite and stand, or scatter and flee. No one tribe can stand alone, and all must stand together. So says Chaotroquin!" Akin shouted, hands now raised above his head. So the old gods had spoken and they had spoken a good truth. If the Bordinani could not find allies, then they would need to flee. Cisco's tribe was large, numbering near 300, but if they wished to keep their home then a pact would need to be struck with the other Bororo.

* * *

 **Hey hey, chapter 2 and it only took like a month and a half. But it's out and the third should follow... sometime. I don't really know. I've been trying to do as much research on ancient cultures as I can, but Wikipedia only goes so far and the rest of the internet is... let's just say someone somewhere thinks racoons shoot lasers from their eyes. Any how I've had to do a lot more actual library reading because I really want to get this right. Like to my knowledge I'm the only one currently writing a story about humanity's development post colonization and there is a LOT to cover.**

 **Like here's some food for thought, with most of Siberia now an ocean Mongolia doesn't exist. There for Genghis Khan doesn't exist and there for the Mongolian empire doesn't exist. The single largest land empire in human history just doesn't exist. An empire that was feared everywhere in the Eastern hemisphere simply doesn't exist anymore.**

 **So yeah, I've been trying to pin humanity down. If you are interested in the cultures that inspired the Bordinani they are the Inca, Bororo, and Ondinani for now. I really what to get some more northwest African influences in there, it seems like a mix of those cultures would produce a lot of interesting social structures.** **I'm also considering doing some sort of vote or something along those lines for each new short story. I'm thinking after this one either going into the colonization (or maybe not so colonized!) of the Americas and maybe looking at the start up of Beach city, or maybe going more liner for a bit and start focusing on the gem war. I've also considered jumping way ahead to the Cold War to see how the use of gems by Chinese forces in the Korean War resulted in several IPA (International Peacekeeping Alliance, basically my idea of the S.U. U.N.) resolutions being drafted and ratified. Basically I've got a lot of ideas bouncing around.**

 **Lastly I'm sure some of you noticed me state that the first gem production had been done by Pink Diamond. Well this is my take on things, the Diamonds need to offer something beyond superpowers to keep hold over such a large civilization for so long and I figured that the best thing was for them to be the key to starting colonization. Before gems can be produced the Diamonds must give an amount of their energy to cause the planet to become fertile. The same would also have to be done to create a new Diamond, but using far more energy.**

 **As always leave a review with any comments, questions, critiques, advice, or anything else you have to offer. See you at some point, hopefully soon.**


	3. A farwell, though maybe not final

So this has been a long time coming. For the foreseeable future I will not be posting, writing, or really doing much of anything with either of my stories, Steven Universe, or this site. A number of things have come up in my personal life, many of them schooling and mental health related, and well both of these were once great outlets for my anxiety, and anger, and general story tellingness, they have now become additional problems in my life. For the past 4 months I haven't really done much writing. I've had ideas, and thoughts, but most of them burned out either due to the massive rewrites required (that mostly applies to Old War, New Battles) or a general loss of interest. I haven't watched anything Steven Universe related that hasn't been about why the show is bad in probably 6 months ( and part of me is really inclined to agree, but my own opinions are my own) and honestly can really bring myself to watch an episode. The show was, at one point, a nice childish release for me. Something akin to what the original Ben 10 was in my younger years. As of late, however I have lost all interest in the show, it's characters, and where it's going. I will be keeping both stories and my account up and running and will gladly answer any questions anyone has. I hope that maybe someday I can come back here and have the inspiration to start John's story, or finish the alternate history of humanity, or maybe write something new. I also hope that my story can inspire others, because we REALLY need more fan-fictions about the human aspects of SU. I'am greatly sorry to those who followed me, to those that anticipated another chapter, a fitting end, or something that wasn't this. But that's life, it hits you hard with bullshit you don't want and then kicks you well your down.

Sincerely yours,

Joel B. Atwater

P.S.

If I ever do come back, both of these stories are getting completely rewritten. John is a walking action movie cliche, Steven has no substance to him beyond not liking killing, and the Gems have gotten such little character development beyond what is already stated in the show. The tribe that I wrote about in When The Stars Fell is every single cliche you could think of for an ancient tribe, like seriously the first scene I have of them is a human sacrifice. On top of this I didn't even really know where I wanted that story to go. I kinda just had a vague idea for a collection of short stories about the early human settlements on earth having to deal with Gems.

P.P.S.

This isn't the first time I considered this, or even wrote out a whole good bye ( that doesn't feel like the right word, but I suppose it is), it's just the first time I finally committed.


End file.
